Very high capacity computers typically include large numbers of independently operable circuits which are capable of concurrent operation to perform simultaneous computations. Such circuits are interconnected to permit computations performed by some of the circuits to be provided to certain others of the circuits. Because computations may then be performed simultaneously, the overall tasks to be performed by such computers can be completed much more quickly and with a speed directly proportional to the number of such independently operable circuits.
To further increase the computational rate of the individual circuits making up these very high capacity computers, the circuit elements are preferably made up of materials best able to operate at high speeds. Circuit elements constructed of various integrated circuits ("IC"), for instance, may be fabricated utilizing gallium-arsenide devices rather than more conventional silicon substrate ICs as integrated circuits formed of gallium-arsenide materials are capable of higher speeds of operation.
While integrated circuits formed of gallium-arsenide materials are capable of higher operating speeds, conventional fabrication techniques typically limit the number of component elements which may be formed on a single integrated circuit substrate. As a result, when gallium-arsenide integrated circuits are used to construct the computational circuitry of a computer, a relatively large number of integrated circuits must be interconnected to one another.
In addition, a large number of connections are also required to then be made between other independently operable circuits of the computer. Typically, this is accomplished by connecting conductive wires to the pins of the integrated circuits at proximal ends thereof. Thereafter, connections between the integrated circuits are formed by connecting the distal ends of these wires extending from selected pins of the various integrated circuits. Solder connections, for example, may then be made and once the wires are connected together, the connections between the integrated circuits are formed.
Large numbers of wires coupled to such pin connections are therefore required to be connected together to form the necessary connections between the independently operable circuits. As a result, selected wires connected to specific pins of the integrated circuits must be individually located from among the larger collection of wires to permit their proper connection.
Moreover, the proximal end portions of the wires extending from the integrated circuits are typically positioned adjacent to one another in a relatively small area. The collection of these adjacently positioned wires form a wiremat and a great deal of time and diligence may be required to locate specific wires in the wiremat prior to their proper interconnection.
A number of techniques have been developed to facilitate the location of the wires within a wiremat which are to be connected together. In one existing apparatus, a dc current is applied to the proximal end portions of certain wires and a current sensing probe is positioned at the distal end portions of the wires. When the current sensing probe is positioned in electrical connection with a wire to which the dc current is applied, the current sensing probe will provide an indication of the connection. This existing apparatus requires the probe to be in actual electrical connection with the proper wire prior to any actual indication by the current sensing probe and no indication is provided when the current sensing probe is positioned proximate to, but not yet in electrical connection with, the wire to which the dc current is applied.
Other known techniques include the application of an ac signal to the proximal end portions of the wires which are to be connected together. The sensing probe includes an inductive amplifier which is capable of detecting times in which the probe is positioned in proximity to the wire to which the ac signal is applied. The sensing probe is thereby able to indicate those times in which the probe is positioned in proximity to the selected wire to facilitate location of the wire to which the ac signal has been applied.
While such techniques permit a determination to be made of those times in which a sensing probe is positioned proximate to certain selected wires, the inductive amplifier utilized in the probe also responds to other spurious ac signals generated by other sources thereby interfering with the detection of the desired ac signals applied to the selected wires. For instance, the inductive amplifier will generally also detect the 60 cycle, ac power signals of conventional power supplies and also spurious signals generated by electronic circuitry, such as data processing equipment. Such signals constitute undesired electronic noise which increases the difficulty of locating the specific wires to which the actual ac signal is supplied.
In operation, the inductive amplifier generates an amplified signal of a signal level which varies in amplitude proportional to the proximity of the sensing probe to the wire to which the ac signal has been applied. The amplified signal is then converted by a transducer into human perceptible form. However, the capacitive coupling between adjacently positioned wires can cause the amplified signal generated by the inductive amplifier to instead identify a wire to which the ac signal is merely capacitively coupled. Such capacitive coupling between adjacently positioned wires therefore makes it more difficult to determine an accurate location of the desired wire.
Because numerous pairs of wires, sometimes in excess of 10,000 pairs of wires, must be located and thereafter connected together, improved techniques to facilitate rapid location of selected wires which are to be connected together would be advantageous.
It is with respect to these considerations and other background information relative to conductive wire locating apparatus and methods that the significant improvements of the present invention have evolved.